INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AS INTERGROUP RELATIONS.

This article investigates the sociological category "inter-group relations" with a view toward using it as a frame of reference for the study of international relations. A relation is a condition where each participating subject functions as an object of the behavior of each other participating subject. A group can be an object of behavior, but it cannot be a subject of behavior. The properties of intergroup relations are most distinctly revealed in those cases where the character of the relationship is completely determined by the groups involved, while the personalities of the contacting subjects remain almost entirely outside the relationship. A particular problem, which the international community has in common with small groups, is that of law enforcement. The lack of an agency for law enforcement in the international community is not fortuitous but conditioned by the character of the international community as a "small group." There are indications that in the months and years to come the problem of international organization will gain new importance. Scientific planning involves the study of the conditions of international organization from the angle of sociology.